<p>I was wondering if I should check the Hispanic box on my Common App ... what exactly qualifies a person as Hispanic? In my particular case, my dad was born in a Spanish-speaking country in South America and immigrated to this country in his teens. Both him and my grandmother speak Spanish daily in my home ... I do know/speak/understand a great deal of Spanish, though I'm not completely fluent in the language. My first and last names are Anglo-sounding and, since my mother is American, I look white. What do you guys think? Does this count?</p>
<p>You are Hispanic for college admissions purposes because your father comes from a Spanish speaking country. Hispanic is an ethnic category, not a race, Hispanics can be any race(s). Being Hispanic does not have anything to do with what you look like or even if you learned to speak Spanish at home. </p>
<p>Please take a look at the Hispanic Students subforum for more information and resources for Latino students.</p>